GR L 9648; (November, 1959) (Digest)
G.R. No. L-9648; November 28, 1959
PEOPLE OF THE PHILIPPINES, plaintiff-appellee, vs. MELECIO CERENA, defendant-appellant.
FACTS
The defendant-appellant, Melecio Cerena, was convicted by the Court of First Instance of Leyte of the crime of attempted rape with physical injuries. He appealed the judgment to the Court of Appeals. While the appeal was pending, the appellant, through counsel, filed a memorandum challenging the trial court’s jurisdiction over the subject matter. The challenge was based on the ground that the information filed in the Court of First Instance did not bear the signature of the “offended party, or her parents, grandparents or guardian,” as required under Article 344 of the Revised Penal Code for crimes against chastity. The Court of Appeals, finding the jurisdictional question merited serious consideration, certified the appeal to the Supreme Court. The record showed that while the information in the Court of First Instance was signed by the assistant provincial fiscal, the amended complaint originally filed in the Justice of the Peace Court was signed by the offended party herself, Fortunata Loviano.
ISSUE
Whether the trial court lacked jurisdiction because the information filed with it was not signed by the offended party or her relatives/guardian as required by Article 344 of the Revised Penal Code.
RULING
The Supreme Court ruled that the trial court had jurisdiction. The requirement under Article 344 of the Revised Penal Code is for the complaint (the initiatory pleading filed with the lower court, such as the Justice of the Peace Court) to be filed by the offended party or her specified relatives/guardian, not for the information (filed by the fiscal in the Court of First Instance) to bear such signatures. Since the amended complaint filed with the Justice of the Peace Court was properly signed by the offended party herself, the jurisdictional requirement was satisfied. Therefore, the appellant’s challenge to the trial court’s jurisdiction was without merit. The Supreme Court certified the case back to the Court of Appeals for further proceedings.